BNT’s Big Mission is Showcasing Bulgaria’s as a Whole, Its Talent and Its Beauty as Burgas Hosts Eurovision Song Contest 2027

“Eurovision 2027” will be held in Burgas. The city was selected as host by Bulgarian National Television (BNT) and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). The public service broadcaster will organise the next edition of the contest following Bulgaria’s historic victory in Vienna, which gave the country the right to host the 71st Eurovision Song Contest. The grand final will take place on 15 May next year at Arena Burgas, with the semi-finals scheduled for 11 and 13 May.

The 71st edition of the Eurovision Song Contest will take place in Burgas following a decision by the international committee that assessed the bids from the capital Sofia and the seaside city. The decision was announced by BNT Director General, Milena Milotinova. The accompanying events will also take place there.

• Eurovision Song Contest 2027 to be held in Burgas

The six dress rehearsals will also be ticketed, allowing audiences to attend several show programmes. The turquoise carpet will be laid in the Sea Garden, while Eurovision Village will be located in the central part of the coastal city, Burgas Mayor, Dimitar Nikolov, said. He added that Burgas was ready to host the 71st edition of Eurovision.

An agreement for the coastal city to host Eurovision 2027 was signed today, August 13, in Sofia by the BNT Director General and the Mayor of Burgas.

Milena Milotinova, Director General of BNT: “I am pleased to announce that Burgas has been selected to host ‘Eurovision 2027’. The contest will take place in May, but from tomorrow we have a great deal of work to do together. We also have the dates for the two semifinals on May 11 and 13, Tuesday and Thursday, and as part of the tradition, the final will be held on Saturday, which in 2027 is on May 15, in the city of Burgas.”

Dimitar Nikolov, Mayor of Burgas: "It is an honor and a privilege for Burgas to host ‘Eurovision 2027.’ I want to thank BNT and the EBU for this unique opportunity—a chance for Burgas and the surrounding region to showcase the beauty of Bulgaria. Through Burgas, all guests and fans watching the live broadcast will get a feel for Bulgaria, and I am convinced that we will give our very best to ensure we deliver a high-quality event and that Burgas goes down in the history of this wonderful, largest live music event as a successful host.”

Photo: Desislava Kulelieva, BNT

Milena Milotinova, Director General of BNT: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank, on behalf of BNT and the EBU, the other three cities that participated, because the competition was very interesting and closely contested; in the first stage, only Burgas and Sofia progressed to the final stage of the selection process following the initial bids. The other two cities did not progress due to because of engineering and technical requirements, which does not mean that their proposals lacked creativity. Of the two cities that progressed, Burgas was the finalist and the winner. But, as I have had the opportunity to say before, BNT is keen to involve all these cities because of the quality of their proposals, their enthusiasm, willingness and commitment to the contest, by including them in additional events as part of the accompanying programme. Our ambition is to showcase Bulgaria as a whole, everything it has to offer, all its talent and all its beauty, and to make Eurovision a national event as well as a major international one, as befits a global event of this scale."

Dimitar Nikolov, Mayor of Burgas: “Burgas is known as a centre of the southern Black Sea coast, with good infrastructure and connectivity. The region around Burgas and Burgas Bay probably receives several times more tourists than the number expected for Eurovision, and I am convinced that the experience we have in the tourism sector will be a great help. The venue where “Eurovision” will take place is, in fact, the newest sports arena in Bulgaria, with the greatest functionality. It has a large capacity and the ability to suspend heavy technical equipment, and this flexibility will help us work quickly with the EBU teams, because the main event will be held there.”

Milena Milotinova, Director General of BNT: “But there will also be accompanying events at different locations in Burgas. Could you tell us a few words about them?”

Dimitar Nikolov, Mayor of Burgas: “Exactly. One of the locations will be right on the seafront, in the Sea Garden, close to the coast. The events will begin there and in the very centre of the city. We will showcase the Bulgarian Black Sea coast and the area around Burgas in the most attractive and impressive way possible. And I really hope this event will be remembered.”

Milena Milotinova, Director General of BNT: “By winning the right to host the event, you have also taken on a great deal of responsibility, so prepare for a lot of work on a daily basis. The international evaluation panel carried out a comprehensive assessment of both cities, Sofia and Burgas. We cannot say that Burgas prevailed on the basis of a single criterion, but the assessment was comprehensive and, based on all EBU requirements, Burgas was the clear choice.”

Dimitar Nikolov, Mayor of Burgas: “The turquoise carpet will be in the Sea Garden area, right on the seafront, while Eurovision Village will be in the city centre. We have additional locations, depending also on the weather conditions around Eurovision. We will ensure connectivity through Burgas Airport, given that the beginning of May also marks the start of the summer tourist season. We have already agreed full support and cooperation with most of the hotels. The national carrier will provide additional flights from Sofia. We have also envisaged Istanbul Airport as an additional option – preliminary discussions have already taken place – as it is geographically closer than Sofia Airport, as well as Varna Airport, because the operator of Burgas Airport is the same as that of Varna Airport. So we have already agreed with these operators to increase capacity in anticipation of higher traffic. Burgas Airport itself is expected to handle no fewer than 21 flights per hour, representing approximately 18,000 passengers.”